LEXINGTON, Va. - The Washington and Lee University women's volleyball team capped off a perfect 4-0 week as they swept Sweet Briar College and the University of Mary Washington on Saturday at the W&L Tri-Match.
HOW IT HAPPENED vs SWEET BRIAR (W&L 3-0 | 25-10, 25-9, 25-9)
- The Generals (14-2, 6-1 ODAC) opened the set with a 9-2 run, which was highlighted by two service aces and a kill from Cara Hamil, while Lexie Stone added two kills. Both teams traded points, with W&L still holding a 12-6 advantage, before the Generals scored eight unanswered points to take a 20-6 lead. The lengthy run featured two service aces from L. Stone and kills from Reese Gilla and Hamil. The Blue and White ended the first frame with four straight points to take the set, 25-10. Katie Stone and Hamil added kills, while Addi Johnson registered an ace.
- Sweet Briar (0-17, 0-6 ODAC) held an early 5-4 lead in the second set before a kill from Gilla and an L. Stone ace kick-started a 14-2 run to break the set wide open. Hamil highlighted the scoring stretch with five kills, while Charlotte Laquis and L. Stone added one each and Gilla tacked on two aces. After back-and-forth action, the Generals closed the set on a 6-1 run to claim the second frame, 25-9. Madeline Sallee recorded a kill, while Turi Trainor tacked on a service ace during the final run.
- The Vixens took a 3-1 lead early in the third set before the Generals went in front, 6-3, after rattling off five straight points. The run was highlighted by a pair of kills from Gilla and one from Hamil. W&L used an ensuing 6-1 run to take a 12-5 lead thanks to a pair of kills from Hamil, one from Laquis and two aces from Johnson. After the Vixens registered a kill, the Blue and White took a 20-6 lead with another 8-0 run, which was highlighted by four service aces from Hamil and a block by Laquis and L. Stone. Both teams traded points down the stretch until L. Stone registered a kill and an ace, while Gilla added a kill to secure the sweep.
HOW IT HAPPENED vs MARY WASHINGTON (W&L 3-0 | 25-18, 25-21, 25-20)
- Mary Washington (5-9) registered a kill and a service ace to open the match before the Generals scored five unanswered points, which was highlighted by three kills from Grace Mitchener. The Blue and White took an 11-4 lead following a 6-1 run, which saw Mitchener tack on three more kills with Ava Fugitt adding one. Another 6-2 run extended the Generals' lead to 10 later in the set thanks to a pair of kills from Mulvaney, one from Mitchener and a block from Emma Mulvaney and Sienna Nichoson. The Eagles cut the deficit to six with a 5-1 run of their own before Claire Hargett and Ava Gaines combined for three kills to give W&L a 22-14 lead. Both teams traded points down the stretch before Hamil put away the first set with a kill, giving W&L a 25-18 win.
- W&L opened the second set with a 6-2 run thanks to a pair of kills from Mitchener and one each from Mulvaney and Hargett. An ensuing 6-1 run from the Generals extended their lead to eight after Mitchener and Fugitt recorded two kills each. Mary Washington cut into the W&L lead with three unanswered points before three straight kills from Mitchener and Stephanie Lynch gave the Generals a 21-13 lead. The Eagles kept battling late in the set, cutting the Generals' lead to 24-21 before a Julia Gustafson service error gave W&L a 25-21 set two win.
- The Generals took an early lead once again, going in front, 4-1, thanks to two kills from Lynch, one from Hargett and a block from the duo of Lynch and Mitchener. Both teams traded points, with the Eagles scoring three straight to tie the set at nine. W&L went on a 5-2 run to take a 16-13 lead, which saw kills from Mitchener and Hargett as well as a block from Mitchener and Lynch. Mary Washington used a 5-2 run to level the set at 18 before a 6-1 run from the Generals gave them a 24-19 lead. Hargett and Mulvaney recorded kills during the run, along with four attack errors from the Eagles. Mitchener sealed the Generals' 12th sweep of the season with a kill.
W&L GAME NOTES
- The Blue and White extended their winning streak to four with the two wins on Saturday, moving to 14-2 on the season. Their win over Sweet Briar moved the, to 6-1 in league play.
- W&L recorded 79 kills on 202 swings with 19 errors for a .297 hitting percentage. They dished out 73 assists across both matches while registering 18 service aces. Defensively, the Generals held both teams to a combined .084 hitting percentage while registering 99 digs and nine blocks.
- Grace Mitchener led the offense with 22 kills on 46 swings with only three errors for a .413 hitting percentage while adding ten digs and a block. Sienna Nichoson dished out a team-high 38 assists, averaging 12.67 per set while Addi Johnson Addison Evans (15) and Addi Johnson (10) both reached double-figure assists.
- Vivi Vasquez led the defensive efforts with 16 digs, averaging 5.33 per set while Mitchener (12) and Emma Mulvaney (10) posted double-digit digs. Charlotte Laquis posted a career-high five blocks with one solo while Stephanie Lynch added three.
- The Blue and White registered 18 service aces in their win over Sweet Briar which is the second-most in program history for a single match.
TOP TEN UPDATES
- Vasquez moved up to No. 3 in ODAC history in career digs, moving past Lauren Stanford (Lynchburg) with 1,947.
- Mitchener moved up to No. 8 all-time in the program's career kills list, moving past Riley Debiec '26 and Laura Maurer '09 with 1,251.
UP NEXT
- The Generals are back on road on Tuesday, Oct. 13 as they travel to Eastern Mennonite University for a 6:30 p.m. match up.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
